Lions win two of three in tourney

Lions win two after loss in tourney opener

The St. Helens Lions had a pretty good week, winning two of their three games in the North Marion Holiday Classic before Christmas.

The Lions gave Roosevelt a good game in their opener. They were down by just four going into the fourth quarter, but came up short, 49-41.

'It was really close,' St. Helens coach Jerry Allen said. 'We should have beaten them but we couldn't make a lay-up. We missed a ton of them and turned the ball over.'

Tanner Long and Nathan Hunter led St. Helens with 10 apiece.

That loss sent the Lions into the consolation bracket where they would win their next two games.

St. Helens got a small lead in the first period and built on it the rest of the way for a 50-41 win.

'We had three guys in double figures. We are starting to share the ball a little bit better and different guys are stepping up each night. They are starting to figure it out. It just takes some time,' Allen said.

Long and Jared Bonney each had 11 points in the game, while Ramiskey had 10.

St. Helens came back the next night to end the tournament with a 59-49 win over host North Marion.

The Lions took the lead in the contest in the first quarter and by halftime built a 39-26 lead. The Huskies cut into that only slightly in the third and the two teams were even in the fourth.

Again the Lions had three players in double figures: Brandon Underwood with 16, Jake Ramiskey with 12, and Jared Bonney with 11.

'So far, so good on the season,' Allen said. 'After each loss we learn something about ourselves and try and correct. Even though we have won a few games, we have to try and keep getting better. We've got some ground to make up, but if we learn from our losses we'll be playing our best basketball at the end of the season.'